The Linemakers

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LAS VEGAS -- The Oakland A’s are still trucking along with their high-scoring affairs. They have gone OVER the total in 23 of their 28 games, including their past four. Their 158 runs scored are tops in the Majors, 17 more than the Rockies, who are second on the list.

For the past two nights, the A’s have been beating down the Angels, scoring 10 runs in each win. That makes it five straight wins over the team that was favored by Las Vegas sports books to win the division. The combined score over those five games: A’s 48, Angels 25.

Despite the A’s uncanny way of manufacturing runs,they're still 18-to-1 to win the World Series; the Angels are 12-to-1. The AL West’s new tenants, the Astros, have just one fewer win than the Angels through April.

But as we turn the calendar to May, new hope arises for the Angels. Last season, they were able to flip the switch after posting an 11-13 record in April. Part of the reason was that prized free-agent slugger Albert Pujols finally started hitting, and the other part was Mike Trout getting an everyday position in the outfield.

Trout hasn’t lived up to his lofty numbers from last season, when he hit .326 with 30 home runs, but maybe he’s just not an April kind of guy. He’s currently hitting .261 with two home runs.

When comparing the Angels and A’s, these stats jump out: the A’s are hitting .253 to the Angels’ .261, yet the A’s have scored 47 more runs.

We expect another high-scoring game between the two teams this afternoon. Tommy Milone (3-2, 3.28 ERA) will match up against C.J. Wilson (2-0, 4.30). Milone beat the Angels, 11-5, on April 10, while Wilson lost to the A’s the day before, 9-5.

Traditionally, Wilson has been good at Oakland, going 3-1 with a 2.40 ERA in his past five starts there. Wilson has also been on a roll over his last three starts, the only pitcher the Angels have been able to consistently rally around during a 9-17 start to their season. They have won his past three starts, with Wilson getting the decision in two of them.

It’s usually not a good idea to wager on a team on a losing streak, or to go against a team that has had its opponent’s number, but we’re backing C.J. Wilson and the Angels today at +105.

We also like the game to get OVER the total despite Wilson allowing only seven runs over his past three starts. We expect him to slow down Oakland’s opportunistic bats a little, but more importantly, we expect the Angels bats to start making some noise.